“Not all women would snub you daughter.”
“Perhaps, but if she were your daughter, would you trust the man you married to love her as much as you do?”
“If the man were worthy, then yes.”
“Interesting.” He leaned closer. “How do you know when a person is worthy?”
“You feel it,” she whispered. “Everything about him, or her, calls to you.”
A hell of an admission coming from a woman who didn’t trust men. “And yet you have decided to become a spinster and spend your life alone.”
“Notalonealone. I’d have my cats.”
“Of course.”
“Cats are dependable.”
“Naturally.”
“But when I made that declaration, I hadn’t met a man who could change my mind.”
Deerhurst froze. His eyes searched hers. “Then have you met him now?”
“I might have.”
The temptation to rise onto one knee and ask for her hand hit him hard. He didn’t dare believe that he was that man, but he couldn’t help but hope that he was.
If he was...
A woman such as Phaedra deserved to be wooed. She deserved poetry and candy. Sweet words of endearment and nights dancing away until her feet hurt.
She tilted her head. “You said before that you fell into the category of men that would marry when you find the right woman. Is that true?”
He glanced at his daughter. “As you can see, it would have to be the right woman or no woman at all.”
She chuckled. “Everything you’ve said in the past takes on a new meaning now that I’ve met her.” Her eyes met his. “Then have you met the right woman now?”
“I might have.”
“Is she a wench?”
He leaned in until his lips hovered just over hers. “She might be.”
“I think I’ve found someone, too.”
“Are you going to kiss?” a small voice interrupted the moment. Deerhurst jerked away from Phaedra as the question pierced him like the cold water of an icy lake.
“I don’t mind if you kiss, Papa,” Abigail said. “So long as you kiss me too.”
Deerhurst groaned.
Phaedra laughed.
He shifted uncomfortably as a certain body part strained against the fabric of his breeches. He’d been deuced uncomfortable since he met Phaedra—one would think he’d be used to it by now. With his daughter present, that discomfort grew tenfold.
Bloody hell.
He must have completely lost his mind.
